This is a new permanent post that will sit within the Quality Assurance and Partnership Service to ensure we sustain the standards and quality assurance of SEND processes, documents and practice. You will report to a Quality Assurance Manager and will sit alongside other Safeguarding Standards Advisors – schools, the LADO and QAROs.
The priority will be to ensure we are making good decisions for children and young people with SEND within Dorset and who belong to Dorset and are compliant with the SEND Code of Practice and Children and Families Act 2014. This will include further developing the quality assurance process of Dorset EHCPs and to extend this to include annual reviews and multi-agency audits working with colleagues across Children’s Services, Health and our families and having oversight on decision making across the LA.
Other priorities will include:
- working with other education services to embed quality assurance processes including the educational psychologists, the virtual school for children in care, inclusion teams
- working with designated clinical lead, CCG, to embed multiagency quality processes including delivering training to health colleagues
- working with the Dorset Parent Carer Council and families to build trust and confidence
What you will be doing
You will need to have knowledge and experience of SEND and partnership working.
You will be part of the central quality assurance service and will report to a children’s service quality assurance manager. This will provide you with the opportunity to learn and share practice and processes to ensure we make good quality decisions for children and young people.
In Dorset we have a matrix management system and you will report to the Principal Educational Psychologist who will will oversee your workplan in collaboration with your line manager.
Your centre of duty will be County Hall, Dorchester and you will be able to work flexibly including working from home.
You will work with a range of professionals, schools and families and will implement learning to take the SEND services to Outstanding.
About you
You will have:
- a passion for achieving outstanding outcomes for children and young people with SEND
- significant experience of working within the field of SEND and quality assurance
- good knowledge of the SEND Code of Practice and the Children and Families Act 2014 and any other relevant guidance
- experience of leading colleagues and implementing practice standards
- previously contributed to policy and strategy and seeing it through to implementation
- ability to use restorative approaches to challenge and support colleagues and partner agencies
- experience of management and coaching skills
- experience of partnership working and working with families
- excellent communication skills
- excellent ICT skills
Additional information
This post has a significant travel requirement and you are contractually required to have a vehicle (or transport deemed to be suitable by the council) available for use as required.
This post involves working with children or vulnerable adults and/or having access to significant information about them and will be subject to a Disclosure and Barring Service check. Please refer to our policy on the employment of ex-offenders for further information.
Interview dates: 26 & 27 October 2021 (to be confirmed)
For further information on our policy on safeguarding children and young people please click here.
Working at Dorset Council
This is a unique opportunity to join a brand-new council in Dorset – home to the spectacular Jurassic Coast and thriving market towns and villages with a strong sense of community and identity.
On 1 April 2019, five district and borough councils and the county council were replaced by the new Dorset Council which will deliver more efficient, accessible, and modern public services.
You will have the opportunity to build your career in a modern, flexible, and inclusive organisation, and this is an exciting time to join – at the start of our journey together.
For more information about our new council visit www.DorsetCouncil.gov.uk/about
Dorset Council provides a framework to explain the behaviours expected from everyone who works, or volunteers, for Dorset Council regardless of their role or grade within the organisation, find more information about this here. The behaviours will form part of the selection process, where you will be asked to evidence when you have demonstrated them.
Dorset Council uses generic job descriptions and person specifications and therefore the job title in the attachments on the right may differ from the job title in the advert. Further specific information may be provided in a context statement where relevant.
This role is UK based and your Right to Work will need to be established as part of the appointment process.
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For more information on how to apply, please see this helpful guidance.
To apply, please click here.
